2018 ford f-150 shudder
10-22-2021, 04:34 PM
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2018 ford f-150 shudder
Back in 2019 I bought a 2018 F-150 2.7 4x4 1080r crew cab truck. The truck only had 8,500 miles on it when I purchased it. It is a very nice vehicle and was everything I was looking for. Currently the truck now has around 47,000 miles on it. For approximately the last 10,000 miles the truck has had a very noticeable shudder while accelerating, specifically at highway speeds. Since the vehicle is still under factory warranty and I plan on keeping it for a while, I decided it would be a good idea to have my local Ford dealer look at it knowing full-well that this is a common, documented complaint with other owners of the same vehicle with similar equipment. I also knew thru reading and talking to other owners with the same issue, that Ford would probably not do anything about it. But the truck is under warranty and it should be honored. So what the heck lets get it checked and see what is going on...
I took the truck in on August 10th, 2021 and told my service advisor what it was doing. He called me back a few days later and told me that the technician could not get the problem to replicate when he test drove it. I told him that could not be true as the truck does it constantly. He asked me to come in and go for a ride with the technician of which I did the next morning. During my ride with the tech, I was able to feel the shudder immediately while I was driving. We switched seats and he drove back to the dealership. During his time behind the wheel he said he felt the shudder. We got back to the the dealership and he told me he was going to look into it and get back to me with a solution. Later on that day the service advisor had called me back and told me that the torque converter needed replacement. I was pleased at the assessment as to me it definitely felt like a torque converter shudder. I was in the wholesale used car business and had arbitrated many vehicles at the auction for torque converter shudder. It is not a hard diagnosis. I know what it feels like and was glad we had all come to the same consensus. So I was sure we were on the right track. They had called Ford and gotten approval to do the repair thru the 60,000 mile power train warranty which is still active on the vehicle. They said that the torque converter was on back-order and would let me know when it came in. No problem since I had been dealing with it for the past 10k miles and it was not major safety issue...
Fast-forward to October 1st - I called the dealership to see if they had heard anything about the torque converter that was ordered. I was informed that it had just came in that morning. Interesting, but whatever... My timing must have just been perfect. I have ESP! We scheduled an appointment for October 13th to have the repair completed. I dropped the truck off at the dealership that morning and Ford was even nice enough to provide me with a vehicle to drive while this warranty repair was being done, so no big deal, take your time and let me know when it is done. I greatly appreciated the professionalism of my service up until this point.
Monday, October 18th I get a phone call from my service advisor. He stated that they have been in contact with Ford engineers and they are now thinking that it is something to do with the head on the engine and not the torque converter. OK??? I told him that I was extremely confused because we had already diagnosed this issue and was in agreement with their diagnosis of the torque converter. However, my goal here is to get the truck fixed and the issue resolved, so do what you have to do. He advised me that they were still in communications with the engineer and to be patient and they would call me with any updates. They had provided me with a rental vehicle so no big deal, I'll be patient. He also told me that the same technician I went on the test drive with 2 months ago was who was doing the work on my truck. That made me comfortable because I knew he felt the shudder in the drive line during acceleration.
Yesterday I decided contact the service advisor to see if there were any updates on the procedure. They have had the vehicle over a week by now for a repair that had already been approved by Ford warranty. Parts had even been ordered and they paid for a rental for me to drive. He stated to me that again they can not replicate the shudder that is obviously there at highway speeds. Why are we still diagnosing and second-guessing the original consensus? He asked me again to come in for another test ride with the technician. I told him that we have already done that and the tech working on my truck was in agreement with me that the shudder was there. It didn't make any since to do this again if we had already pinpointed the problem. He then tells me that the tech we were working with is mysteriously "no longer with the company" and I need to go with a different tech. What??? You just told me 3 days ago it was the same technician.... Ok, whatever... I told him that the shudder was obvious, and constant during acceleration at highway speeds. Any novice mechanic who drives this vehicle would be able to reproduce the shudder let alone a Ford Master Technician. My 16 year old son who only has his learners permit and very limited driving experience noticed it! I asked to please have the tech take the truck on the highway and pay attention while accelerating. The shudder is 100% there and is very noticeable, you can't tell me it is not! The other tech who drove this vehicle felt the exact same thing and diagnosed the torque converter needing replacement!
I am beginning to get very frustrated with this situation. I feel basically like I am getting the run-around only to be stuck with the problem in the end. I have been all over these forums about the 1080R transmission and the Ford shudder issue. No on seems to be able to determine anything about this. Nor has anyone ever posted anything about a remedy for this drivability issue. I have read everything from the torque converter to the to the charge air cooler causing the issue. But Ford will not acknowledge anything nor will attempt to remedy the problem. In the end I just want my truck fixed, whatever the issue may be.
I am getting the hint that Ford is going to tell me to get *ucked on this. If this is the case I feel like I need to trade this POS off for a GM (Government Motors) Chevy or GMC product. I really hate the body style of their vehicles but have owned them in the past without any serious issues. I am also looking into replacing my wife's Lincoln MKX (also a Ford product) and was hoping to upgrade to a newer model of the same car, as well as purchasing a used late model Fusion for my 16 year old son. I plan on doing this in the next 6 months or so. If Ford can not stand behind their products I don't think I will be purchasing others. I think it is sad for the best selling vehicle in the U.S. to not have a solution to a problem that is clearly an issue. It will drive myself and others into the graces of the competition.
Are there any techs out there that have any insight to this? I seriously thought I had the dealership, technician, and Ford all on the same page with me on this but now it seems like they are trying to weasel out of it leaving me with the problem to deal with later on down the road when the transmission takes a crap! Unfortunately, the only option I have is to trade the thing off at the Chevy dealer and make it someone else's problem. No wonder used car dealers get such a bad reputation!
Any of your thoughts, advice, or experience would be greatly appreciated!
I took the truck in on August 10th, 2021 and told my service advisor what it was doing. He called me back a few days later and told me that the technician could not get the problem to replicate when he test drove it. I told him that could not be true as the truck does it constantly. He asked me to come in and go for a ride with the technician of which I did the next morning. During my ride with the tech, I was able to feel the shudder immediately while I was driving. We switched seats and he drove back to the dealership. During his time behind the wheel he said he felt the shudder. We got back to the the dealership and he told me he was going to look into it and get back to me with a solution. Later on that day the service advisor had called me back and told me that the torque converter needed replacement. I was pleased at the assessment as to me it definitely felt like a torque converter shudder. I was in the wholesale used car business and had arbitrated many vehicles at the auction for torque converter shudder. It is not a hard diagnosis. I know what it feels like and was glad we had all come to the same consensus. So I was sure we were on the right track. They had called Ford and gotten approval to do the repair thru the 60,000 mile power train warranty which is still active on the vehicle. They said that the torque converter was on back-order and would let me know when it came in. No problem since I had been dealing with it for the past 10k miles and it was not major safety issue...
Fast-forward to October 1st - I called the dealership to see if they had heard anything about the torque converter that was ordered. I was informed that it had just came in that morning. Interesting, but whatever... My timing must have just been perfect. I have ESP! We scheduled an appointment for October 13th to have the repair completed. I dropped the truck off at the dealership that morning and Ford was even nice enough to provide me with a vehicle to drive while this warranty repair was being done, so no big deal, take your time and let me know when it is done. I greatly appreciated the professionalism of my service up until this point.
Monday, October 18th I get a phone call from my service advisor. He stated that they have been in contact with Ford engineers and they are now thinking that it is something to do with the head on the engine and not the torque converter. OK??? I told him that I was extremely confused because we had already diagnosed this issue and was in agreement with their diagnosis of the torque converter. However, my goal here is to get the truck fixed and the issue resolved, so do what you have to do. He advised me that they were still in communications with the engineer and to be patient and they would call me with any updates. They had provided me with a rental vehicle so no big deal, I'll be patient. He also told me that the same technician I went on the test drive with 2 months ago was who was doing the work on my truck. That made me comfortable because I knew he felt the shudder in the drive line during acceleration.
Yesterday I decided contact the service advisor to see if there were any updates on the procedure. They have had the vehicle over a week by now for a repair that had already been approved by Ford warranty. Parts had even been ordered and they paid for a rental for me to drive. He stated to me that again they can not replicate the shudder that is obviously there at highway speeds. Why are we still diagnosing and second-guessing the original consensus? He asked me again to come in for another test ride with the technician. I told him that we have already done that and the tech working on my truck was in agreement with me that the shudder was there. It didn't make any since to do this again if we had already pinpointed the problem. He then tells me that the tech we were working with is mysteriously "no longer with the company" and I need to go with a different tech. What??? You just told me 3 days ago it was the same technician.... Ok, whatever... I told him that the shudder was obvious, and constant during acceleration at highway speeds. Any novice mechanic who drives this vehicle would be able to reproduce the shudder let alone a Ford Master Technician. My 16 year old son who only has his learners permit and very limited driving experience noticed it! I asked to please have the tech take the truck on the highway and pay attention while accelerating. The shudder is 100% there and is very noticeable, you can't tell me it is not! The other tech who drove this vehicle felt the exact same thing and diagnosed the torque converter needing replacement!
I am beginning to get very frustrated with this situation. I feel basically like I am getting the run-around only to be stuck with the problem in the end. I have been all over these forums about the 1080R transmission and the Ford shudder issue. No on seems to be able to determine anything about this. Nor has anyone ever posted anything about a remedy for this drivability issue. I have read everything from the torque converter to the to the charge air cooler causing the issue. But Ford will not acknowledge anything nor will attempt to remedy the problem. In the end I just want my truck fixed, whatever the issue may be.
I am getting the hint that Ford is going to tell me to get *ucked on this. If this is the case I feel like I need to trade this POS off for a GM (Government Motors) Chevy or GMC product. I really hate the body style of their vehicles but have owned them in the past without any serious issues. I am also looking into replacing my wife's Lincoln MKX (also a Ford product) and was hoping to upgrade to a newer model of the same car, as well as purchasing a used late model Fusion for my 16 year old son. I plan on doing this in the next 6 months or so. If Ford can not stand behind their products I don't think I will be purchasing others. I think it is sad for the best selling vehicle in the U.S. to not have a solution to a problem that is clearly an issue. It will drive myself and others into the graces of the competition.
Are there any techs out there that have any insight to this? I seriously thought I had the dealership, technician, and Ford all on the same page with me on this but now it seems like they are trying to weasel out of it leaving me with the problem to deal with later on down the road when the transmission takes a crap! Unfortunately, the only option I have is to trade the thing off at the Chevy dealer and make it someone else's problem. No wonder used car dealers get such a bad reputation!
Any of your thoughts, advice, or experience would be greatly appreciated!
10-24-2021, 01:58 PM
#2
not a technician, but i had the same issue, shudder under light acceleration at highway speeds. my solution was spark plugs, I know sounds crazy, but it worked. Gaps were way out of spec and it was causing misfires and it was causing the pcm to become confused and unlock and lock the torque converter. Ive heard of this before thats why i tried the spark plugs. i also had the transmission serviced, pan drop and filter replacement. now it shifts and drives excellent. just my .02.
The following users liked this post:
artsr2002 (10-25-2021)
11-01-2021, 10:59 AM
#4
Senior Member
Every manufacturer has some sort of issue. The GMC's are having lifter issues. Since the 10 speed was a collaboration between GMC and FORD. Maybe it's the GMC portion that causing the shudder 
I had a shudder and 21N08 seemed to take care of it for me.
I had a shudder and 21N08 seemed to take care of it for me.
Last edited by JetFixxxer; 11-01-2021 at 11:03 AM.
05-07-2022, 07:52 PM
#5
I arrived at this post being redirected by the F150 Forum.com forum's auto linking of similar problems from the bottom of another posting. This redirect was sure a waist of my time reading. The original poster, has made one posting and has never responded back with any solutions or results of his posted problem. 